Entomology (Study of Bugs)/segmented insect

Hello Ed. I live in Knoxville, Tennessee and found this insect perched on my door frame this weekend. It has six legs and a segmented body with a proboscis type protrusion. What the heck is this? The segments almost look armor-like. Thanks a bunch for your help.
Robin E. Green
Knoxville, TN

AnswerDear Robin - This is a larva of a beetle, most likely in the family Lampyridae (fireflies). However, larvae of some net-winged beetles (family Lycidae) also can be very similar in appearance, so I cannot be 100% certain of the i.d. - see http://tinyurl.com/c3htdyc for details.

Hope this helps,
Saugy

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That explains it. Thank you so much for your help and timely response. When I need to improve my insect knowledge, I will now know who to reach out to!

Expertise

Will accept most questions in general entomology, including those related to medical entomology, taxonomy, ecology, arthropod surveillance, and pest management.
If you are requesting a 'mystery bug' identification, PLEASE either attach an image to your question, or post an image on a web page (such as Flickr) so that I can look at it, as verbal descriptions frequently are insufficient for a definitive identification.

Experience

21 years in the U.S. Army as a medical entomologist; duties varied from surveillance of pest populations (including mosquitoes, cockroaches, ticks, and stored products pests) to conducting research on mosquito-virus ecological relationships and mosquito faunal studies. Ten years as a civilian analyst for the Department of Defense, primarily on distribution of vector-borne diseases worldwide. Limited experience on surveillance of agricultural insects in North Dakota and Indiana.

PublicationsAmerican Journal of Public Health, Contributions of the American Entomological Institute, Japanese Journal of Sanitary Zoology, Journal of Economic Entomology, Mosquito News, and Mosquito Systematics.

Education/CredentialsB.S. in entomology from North Dakota State University in 1963, M.S. in entomology from Purdue University in 1967.